Find out how popular the last name Harvill is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Harvill.

Harvill, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Harvill surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Harvill in America

Harvill is the 15080th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Harvill surname appeared 1,956 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Harvill.

We can also compare 2010 data for Harvill to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Harvill

The surname Harvill is believed to have originated in England, likely during the medieval period. It is thought to be derived from a place name, possibly related to the Old English words "hear" (meaning hare) and "vill" (meaning village or town), suggesting a connection to a location where hares were abundant or significant.

One of the earliest recorded instances of this surname can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Nottinghamshire from the late 12th century, where a John de Harvill is mentioned. This indicates that the name was already established in England by that time.

In the 13th century, the Harville family held lands in Yorkshire, and a Robert de Harville is mentioned in the Hundred Rolls of 1273 as a landowner in that county. This provides evidence of the surname's presence in northern England during that era.

The Domesday Book, compiled in 1086 for William the Conqueror, does not contain any direct references to the surname Harvill. However, it does record several place names that could potentially be related to the origin of the name, such as Harevill and Harevilla.

Notable individuals with the surname Harvill include Sir John Harvill (1490-1558), who served as a member of the English Parliament during the reign of Henry VIII. Another prominent figure was Robert Harvill (1612-1678), a wealthy merchant and landowner in Gloucestershire.

In the 17th century, the Harvill family established themselves in the American colonies, with William Harvill (1625-1693) being one of the earliest known settlers, arriving in Virginia in the 1640s. His descendants went on to play significant roles in the development of various regions in the United States.

Other notable individuals with this surname include Elizabeth Harvill (1786-1862), a renowned author and poet from Norfolk, England, and Sir Thomas Harvill (1822-1895), a British military officer who served in the Crimean War and later became a colonial administrator in India.

Throughout its history, the surname Harvill has been subject to variations in spelling, including Harville, Harvel, Harvell, and Harvell, reflecting the evolving orthographic practices over time and regional differences in pronunciation and record-keeping.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Harvill

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Harvill.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Harvill was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Harvill has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Harvill was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Harvill, please contact us.

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